Today,Altria Group, Inc. (Altria) has releasedits results for the fiscal quarter ended 31 March 2009. Altria's results include a reference to earnings for the quarters ended 31 March 2009 and 2008 attributable to Altria's 28.5% economic and voting investment in SABMiller plc, expressed in US GAAP at prevailing exchange rates.

The amount disclosed for the quarter ended 31 March 2009 is US$106 million (31 March 2008: US$143 million). No further analysis of these earnings has been disclosed. Investors should note that these financial results are derived from management accounts, have not been audited, and may be subject to change. There are a number of differences concerning the timing of recognition of results as well as differences relating to the treatment of exceptional items and the definition of the US GAAP statutory earnings as reported by Altria compared to SABMiller's results as reported under IFRS.